Frostbitten Mistletoe
by Yemi Hikari
Summary: Hitsugaya Toshiro doesn't like his birthday or Christmas. The two events occur the same time each year and represent something he didn't have - a family. That miserable time of year comes around again after the war with the Quincy. The Shiba clan invites him to their Christmas celebration - this and certain things revealed to him adds to his misery.
1. Hating Christmas

_Disclaimer – I don't own Bleach. This was my contest entry for Wattpad's holiday contest. Very belated merry Christmas._

_1/13/2015 ~ Kaien dying after Isshin disappeared is actually not a mistake. There are actually no context clues in canon indicating when Kaien's death took place. This means he could have died before Isshin disappeared, or after._

**Frostbritten Mistletoe  
><em>Hating Christmas<em>**

Two bright teal eyes watched as a puff of breath came out on the frosty air. The young taicho of the tenth division walked with his arms tucked into the sleeves of his Shinigami uniform to help keep warm. The white haired youth wasn't fond of the cold despite the fact his powers were ice based. His feet made a crunching sound as he walked across the yard of the thirteenth division grounds. The third seats of the division had spent a good deal of time decorating the place.

Toshiro's ears picked up conversations about the celebration that was planned for his and Ukitake's birthdays. The child taicho slipped past the members before they could see him and arrived shortly afterward at the Ugendo Quarters. This part of the thirteenth division was decked out with the most decorations. He peeked around the door frame as a sweat broke out over his body due to the ill feeling in the pit of his stomach.

Ukitake's head darted up and he waved the young taicho in. A Santa hat was on top of his head. "Good morning Hitsugaya Taicho. Come on inside."

The young taicho slipped into the room and knelt in a traditional position in front of the taicho of the thirteenth division. The corners of his mouth twisted up in frustration. "I know why I'm here today. You should know full well that I don't like my birthday anymore then I like Christmas."

The smile on the other white haired taicho's face left as his thin hands worked at making the traditional tea. "The Shiba clan is expecting you at their Christmas celebrations this year."

Toshiro's mouth opened only to snap shut in frustration. His young head turned to the side in order to try and hide the hurt feeling. "The current head should know full well why I don't like celebrating my birthday and Christmas." The child taicho's mind drifted off to seeing families celebrating Christmas in the world of the living and the twinge of pain that would set off. He also remembered a warm hand always coming to settle on his shoulder and a voice telling him it was fine to feel the way he did. "Taicho and Kaien-dono should have told her."

"You're under the assumption that I am actually the head of the family." Kukaku's voice caused the young taicho to turn and look at the female Shiba clan member in surprise. She slipped into the room and sat in a traditional position. She faced the young taicho instead of the captain of the thirteenth division.

"Kukaku-dono..." Toshiro's throat tightened as his hands clenched. He looked at the ground wondering how he could avoid the subject of not going to the Shiba clan's celebration. "If you aren't the head of the Shiba-clan, then who is?"

"Technically you are."

The young taicho's body froze up as his throat tightened even more. His mind began to whir as he tried to figure out the meaning of what she meant by him _technically_ being the head of the clan. His hands tightened their grip on the front of his uniform. "I am?" Toshiro swallowed. "I'm not a member of the Shiba-clan. And shouldn't I have been told about this if it was true?"

Kukaku took a deep breath as she looked at the young taicho. "It was my decision not to tell you as well as my decision to serve as a stand in for you."

A sudden flare of anger caused Toshiro to grit his teeth as well as cause his rieatsu to flare out. His head snapped up. "Why... shouldn't I have been told?"

Ukitake placed a cup of tea in front of the young taicho. "When Kaien died... why do you think he did what he did that night?"

"_Great... this Christmas buisness is enough of a damper as it is..._" Toshiro looked way as he crossed his arms across his chest. "He loved Miyako-dono dearly. Taicho disappeared a few months prior if I remember correctly and that was effecting him as well."

"That's what most people know about the situation, but there is some more." Ukitake watched as the young taicho looked up with teal eyes reflecting a high level of hurt. "His actions also had to do with you."

"No..." The young taicho shook his head. "He was upset because he couldn't protect Miyako-dono. She was his other half, the part that balanced him out. You're implying that I was more important then the woman he loved. That's not true."

Kukaku took a deep breath. "It wasn't that you were more important then the woman he loved, but what importance you had to the two of them. My brother and sister-in-law..." There came a long silence as the young taicho looked at his knees. "We decided not to tell you that you were the head of the Shiba-clan because that would have meant telling you that my brother and sister-in-law managed to finalize your adoption a few days before they died. You were already dealing with our older brother leaving and their deaths. You didn't need that as well."

"Why now..." Two teal eyes looked at two small hands. The knuckles of the hands were stark white as the boy's frown deepened. "_Seriously... I hate the Christmas season enough as it is. Isn't this going to make me hate it even more?_"

Ukitake took a deep breath. "We don't know the year you were born, so we don't know how old you actually are. A physical was done on you to asses your physical age and from there we calculated when you would be the equivalent physical age to that of a thirteen year old. You understand now that I didn't ask you here to celebrate your birthday? Though truth be told I enjoy having a young one with a birthday so close to my own."

"_If I'm the head... then I'm banning the celebration so I don't go... I _think." Toshiro closed his eyes. "So... today is the day I'm expected to take over my duties as head of the Shiba-clan?"

"Today _was_ the day you were supposed to take over your duties as head of the Shiba-clan." Kukaku shifted to a more relaxed position and pulled out her pipe. "One of the positive things that came about because the Quincy war was the fact your duties as head ended before you had to worry about them. You're coming to our Christmas celebration not as our head, but as our dearly loved nephew. Even Ganju is looking forward to seeing you. We want you there, particularly since there is plenty to celebrate this year unlike the other years."

"I'll think about it." The young taicho's head tilted down so he didn't have to look either adult in the eye. "Truth be told I don't feel comfortable coming."

Kukaku let out a sigh. "I'm not sure if you'll be given much choice in the matter. You of all people should know how the Shiba-clan operates."


	2. Politics at Christmas

**Frostbitten Mistletoe  
><em>Politics at Christmas<em>**

The young taicho found he couldn't brush the Shiba-clan celebration from his mind which in turn put him into a poor mood. He found upon arriving back at the tenth division offices that Rangiku had spent her time decorating the place instead of working on paperwork. The woman had also lit scented candles that made the room smell like gingerbread and shortbread cookies. Toshiro found himself snapping at her while she simply grinned from ear to ear. He then attempted to bury himself into his paperwork to avoid the fact Christmas Eve was approaching.

The mind of the white haired child couldn't focus on what he was doing and he found himself wandering off in order to try and think. He jumped at the chance to go on a mission to the world of the living when he cropped up simply to get away from Soul Society and his troubles. The mission took little time to take care of as a captain level Shinigami and he found himself standing in the air outside of a family home, his throat tightening at what he saw as a soft snow fell because of his powers.

Toshiro's teal eyes could clearly see the entire family decorating Christmas tree. He took a deep breath as he was unable to pull his eyes away, only to feel a hand placed on his shoulder. He jerked his head around at the comforting feeling and words came out of his mouth without realizing what he was saying. "Taicho, Kaien-dono... which one of you..." The child's eyes blinked a couple of times before swallowing as his cheeks heated up from his mistake. "Kurosaki..."

"Toshiro, it's the day before Christmas Eve. Kukaku asked me to come and get you."

The next words that came out of the young taicho's mouth came in a shaky tone of voice. "I don't want to."

"I was told haul you back to Soul Society over my shoulder if I had to."

A deep breath came out of the child taicho's lungs. "The Shiba way of doing things huh..." Toshiro flash stepped to the ground and popped back into his gigai. "There are a few things I need to do first."

"Toshiro..."

"Could you do me a favor Kurosaki?"

"If it involves not taking you back... the answer is no."

"No." Toshiro took a deep breath and headed to the shopping district of Karakura Town. The young taicho stopped outside of bookstore and stepped in as the door let out a jingle. The scent of Christmas candles filled the air again and Christmas music played. "Could you stay here?"

"And let you run off?"

"Just... don't look at what I'm looking at." The young taicho snapped as he placed his hands in his pockets. He headed to the section selling the old classics and found himself drawn to the _Don Quixote_ book. He glanced over his shoulder to make sure Ichigo wasn't looking before grabbing the book and heading to the cash register.

"Do you need this gift wrapped young man?"

"Yes. I don't have the time to do it myself." Toshiro turned his head to see Ichigo's head snapping forward. This caused his teal eyes to narrow into a glare. He pulled the wrapped package into his arms as if he didn't want to let it go.

The orange haired teen let out a sigh. "I thought you didn't like Christmas."

"I don't. I'm not against getting gifts for the people I care about though." The door jingled as the two stepped out and Toshiro headed to the next place. "You still can't look."

Ichigo let out a sigh and folded his arms across his chest only to have the young taicho shove the package into his arms so that his own arms were free. He picked out two stuffed animals that looked like they could be twins, but without looking like each other. The two stuffed animals were decked with holiday frocks and cloth peppermint candies. For some reason Toshiro still didn't feel like he was getting into the holiday season.

He also picked out a wind chime for Kukau and a pig ornament for Ganju. He then headed to a flower shop and picked out a poinsettia plant. He turned to Ichigo who was still holding onto the wrapped packages with mirth. "I can go back now. I need to drop off this at the office for Matsumoto. I can get those gifts to Kukaku-dono and Ganju-dono, so would you make sure your sisters get theirs?"

The mouth of the orange haired teen twisted up at the corners. "Sure Toshiro."

The young taicho felt his shoulder muscles tightening as he stepped through the gate and headed to the office. Rangiku was nowhere in sight, so he left the plant on her desk. Letting out a sigh he followed Ichigo to the first district of the Rukongai. The first thing he saw upon arriving at the Shiba-clan home was the statues of Ganju dressed as Santa. Two white eyebrows went up before he shook his head. He followed Ichigo down the steps. The smells of baking told him they were heading to the kitchens. He expected Miyamoto Taichi to be giving the orders. Instead...

Ichigo stepped through the door. "Yuzu... can you go ahead and put these presents under the Christmas Tree?"

Toshiro blinked a couple of times as his cheeks flushed with embarrassment. He also felt his throat tightening. Kurosaki Karen was standing at one of the counters looking at a cookbook in a rather bored fashion while Kurosaki Yuzu ordered people around in the kitchen. The smell of flower, sugar and eggs filled the air. Yuzu blinked a couple of times as she tugged at her apron strings. Upon seeing the young taicho her frown turned into a bright smile. "Toshiro-kun!"

The four friends of Shiba Ganju looked up in surprise before turning to whisper the fact Yuzu had called the young taicho by his first name. Toshiro took a deep breath. "What are you doing here?"

Karen looked up. "We're spending Christmas with family. What are you doing here?"

Yuzu's brown eyes blinked a couple of times as she looked at her sister. "Ichi-nii invited him because he's your boyfriend. Pick out a cookie he'll like as well!"

Toshiro felt the color drain from his face as his throat tightened. The darker of the Kurosaki twins looked up at him with a frown on her face. "Yuzu... Toshiro and I aren't dating."

A sigh of relief was heard from Ganju's friends causing the young taicho to tense of even more.

"I'd also rather not be here." The words came out of Toshiro's mouth causing the others to stare at him. "Look... I don't like this time of year."

"Toshiro! If you're not careful... then three ghosts are going to visit you!"

The young taicho stared at her. "Visit me? What sins have I caused in the past to make it so three ghosts would come and visit me? And isn't that illogical as we're in the..." The white haired child paused wondering if Yuzu knew where they were. "... I mean, we're able to see ghosts. What is three more? And last time I checked there is no ghost of Christmas present, past and future."

"You know the Christmas Carol?"

He swallowed and looked away. "Kurosaki... where is your father."

Ichigo looked towards the ceiling in annoyance. "If you can call Kukaku and Ganju by their first names you certainly can call us by our first names."

Yuzu blinked a couple of times. "He's in a meeting and he's not to be disturbed. Aunt Kukaku said so. Well... Ichi-nii is supposed to go to the meeting when he gets back."

"The meeting hall then." Toshiro spun on his heels and made to take off.

Karen came over and grabbed his arm while Ichigo left the presents on the counter. "Toshiro... didn't you hear what my sister said? Dad is in a meeting. We're not allowed in."

The young taicho blinked a couple of times as she tried to look him in the eye. More color drained from his face as he looked away. The young taicho yanked his sleeve out of her grip before turning to speed off. While his feet made no sound the feet of Ichigo and Karen as they followed him did. So did the doors to the meeting hall as he threw them open to look at the man who had been missing from his life for a good deal of time. There was no more color to drain from his face and his stomach clenched.

Isshin looked up from sitting in front of the elders of the Shiba clan as Karen grabbed his sleeve again. Kukaku and Ganju both sat behind him looking at the three while the female Kurosaki looked at the adults with worry. "Come on Toshiro. We're not allowed to be in here."

The white haired youth again pulled his sleeve away as he continued to stare at the man. The hurt he felt was reflected in his young eyes. He watched as Isshin quickly stood up and walked over. The next thing Toshiro knew the man had grabbed him under the arm pits and lifted him up into the air. "Taki! Taki!"

The young taicho's cheeks flared up as he stared at the man in horror. One of the elders went to one knee. "Shiba Isshin! Such behavior is uncalled for! You are the head of the Shiba-clan, so for once act like it."

Isshin cocked his head towards the men with a large smile on his face. "Come on! Toshiro is so cute I can't resist!"

Karen voice rose in a threatening manner. "Dad! Put Toshiro down! You're embarrassing him."

The man titled his head to his daughter. The motion of lifting the small Shinigami up and down was finished despite the fact Toshiro remained dangling in the air. "Why? I haven't seen my dear nephew and former third seat in such a long time!"

"Nephew?" Karen blinked a couple of times as Isshin finally set the young Shinigami down. "What is that supposed to mean?"

One of the elders spoke up as he glared at Karen. "The young captain of the tenth division is the son of your father's twin brother. He was as such the head of the clan after his father's death. As such he is allowed to be here both as a former head and the representative of his branch family. You on the other hand are not."

Toshiro watched as Karen bowed to the elders with a hurt look on her face. "I apologize. I'll be heading back to the kitchens to help my sister."

The door slid shut as Isshin moved to sit back down on his cushion. Ichigo moved to sit on his father's right. Isshin patted the cushion to his left. "Toshiro... come sit by me."

Toshiro didn't move away from the door, nor did he look back towards the adults. "I'll only do so if it is an order."

The young taicho could hear a muttering from the clan elders about him being rude. Isshin of course brushed it off. "Pray tell me why? You owe me that much?"

"Doesn't it bother you that one of the clan elders was disrespectful towards your daughter?"

"Pray tell why you think that Toshiro."

The young taicho spun around then as his eyes flashed with anger. His hands clenched at his side.

"Karen only came here because she was trying to prevent me from getting in trouble. Neither one of us knew I would be allowed to stay. The only reason I came was to confront my former taicho for what should be obvious reasons. On top of this she feels she's been regulated to a stereotypical role for females by being asked to go back to the kitchens. I've too much respect for her to let this slide. I should also mention the fact I never acted as head and I was adopted into the clan, so it isn't appropriate for me to be here."

Isshin let out a laugh. "You're right. That particular elder does in fact owe her an apology for the way he put things. And yes Toshiro... I'm going to give you an order. Go have fun and be kid. There are some things we're going to be discussing that I don't want you to worry about and may even bore you to tears."

Toshiro looked at his former taicho for a few minutes before slipping from the room. The white haired youth headed to the kitchen as he placed his thin hands behind his back. As he walked down the hallway he stopped short when he saw Kuchiki Taicho and his sister. The boy's bright teal eyes widened with surprise. The captain of the sixth division looked him right in the eye. "You aren't going to be at the meeting with the Shiba clan members Hitsugaya Taicho."

"No... I'm not exactly comfortable being there."

He turned his head to watch them pass before heading off to the kitchen where Karen and Yuzu were speaking with each other.

"It's incest though..."

"Yuzu... can it, it isn't incest."

"... and he didn't stand up for you when..."

"Yuzu..." Karen walked away from the girl leaving her sister in a fussy mood. "I thought you were going to be at the meeting with everyone else."

"Is she talking about Kuchiki and Kuchiki? It isn't as if they are blood related. Plus, it's besides the point when they think of each other as siblings."

The dark haired twin shoved a mixing bowl into Toshiro's arms. "I'm not sure what you're talking about. Help me with this batch of gingerbread cookies. If I try making the cookies they'll end up ruined somehow. I think Yuzu brought to much from the world of the living."

"If that isn't what you meant, then what did you mean? I thought you meant the Kuchiki clan as they are joining the Shiba clan in the meeting hall for some reason."

Karen leaned on the counter. "Yuzu means us. I told her that cousins are forth rung and there is nothing wrong with them marrying."

"Dad and Uncle Kaien were identical twins. That's like marrying a half-sibling."

"Yuzu... we're not even dating, so it doesn't even matter." Karen shook her head. "Still... which one of us is right?"

"Neither."

Yuzu's bag of peppermint candies burst open and scattered on the floor. "Neither? You don't defend Karen and then can't even side with her!"

Toshiro glared at the female as the darker haired Kurosaki twin gathered the ingredients. "Taicho said that elder owes your sister an apology, so what ever is that matter with that? Plus... neither of you are right in this situation. I'm adopted into the Shiba clan, not a member by blood."

"That can't be true." Yuzu blinked a couple of times while the other two stared. "You're implying that your parents didn't want you. You're a wonderful person, so why wouldn't they want you?"

"Yuzu..." Karen shook her head as Toshiro tried to ignore the two and instead started on the batches cookies.

"I didn't say anything wrong. By the way... I don't recollect meeting dad's twin brother and his wife? When are your parents going to get here Toshiro? They aren't busy working are they?"

The young taicho let go of the spoon and it clattered against the edge of the bowl. His hands reached down to grip the counter. "They're dead. Could we change the subject?"

"How about we just not talk? Christmas is supposed to be a fun time, not a damper."


	3. A Family for Christmas

**Frostbitten Mistletoe  
><em>A Family for Christmas<em>**

The smell of cookies soon filled the kitchen. The trays were pulled out of the oven and the decorating process began. The candies with the peppermint candies were shaped like candy canes and ended up decorated as if they were such. The coco mint cookies ended up being reindeer with edible silver baubles for decoration. Sugar cookies shaped like snowflakes were given a powdered sugar coating. There were cookies that looked like Santa, bells and sleighs.

Toshiro found himself forgetting about the fact this Christmas like every other had so far been a damper as he decorated the cookies. The girls attempted to decorate as well, but they couldn't keep up with Toshiro's steady hand, nor could they be consistent like he was. Yuzu leaned over, her brown eyes wide with admiration. "Toshiro-kun... how are you able to do that?"

The young taicho paused, blinking a couple of times. "How? I don't know. I just do. It's not that amazing."

"Not amazing?" Karin shook her head. A smile suddenly appeared on her face. "How long would it take you to do one of your ice sculptures?"

"Ice sculptures? Really?" Yuzu's smile widened. It quickly fell into a frown. "It must take a lot of time to do."

"I possibly could have something done in two to three hours. The larger the item is, the longer it takes. However... the larger ice sculptures last longer. Unless of course..." Toshiro swallowed as he set down the frosting.

"Did I say something wrong."

"No. I just remember that the head taicho's gone. The old man that is. He could melt ice just with his mere presence." The boy picked up the red frosting again and went back to work on the Santa Claus cookies. The cookies were hidden upon finishing so that Ganju wouldn't eat them until tomorrow. Yuzu tugged on Toshiro's sleeve. The boy's bright teal eyes blinked a couple of times as he followed them into another room.

A Christmas tree was standing in the corner of the room. Yuzu hurried over to pull out a box of ornaments. Karen shook her head. "Yuzu... the lights and tinsel go on first. Then we add the ornaments."

Yuzu looked towards Toshiro with a pout on her face. "Toshiro-kun!"

"I'm going to side with your sister simply because I don't know anything about this Christmas thing."

"Christmas isn't a thing!" The brown haired twin's mouth twisted up even more.

"Sure..."

"Toshiro doesn't mean what you think he does." Karin pulled out the lights and began to wrap the lights around the tree. Toshiro shook his head and took them from her. He carefully unwound what she did and began to rewind them around the tree in a much neater manner. The dark haired twin placed her hands on her hips. "Really?"

"It will drive me nuts if it's not on their in a neat manner." The white haired youth finished and looked at the tree with a frown. He blinked a couple of times as the lights were turned on and a deep breath came out of his his mouth.

Yuzu grabbed his arms lightly causing him to jump from the touch. "Are yu having fun?"

"Not..." His teal eyes blinked a couple more times. "Actually... yes."

Karin handed him the tinsel for him to wrap around the tree. The three then began to put on the ornaments. Every so often he would move on of the ornaments that they placed on the tre causing laughter from the two girls. Each time they laughed the corners of his mouth would crease into a frown. They then moved to decorating the rest of the room. They spread out long strands of greenery that Toshiro didn't know the name of and placed other decorations.

When they almost finished, a smile spread across his face. "I have to admit. This isn't as bad as..."

The young taicho found his words interrupted by the voices of Ichigo and Rukia coming towards the room. The tone of voice both used was raised above their normal level. Yuzu frowned. "Are they arguing again?"

Karin let out a sigh. "Yuzu... they don't have to get along all of the time."

"Mom and dad did." The brown haired twin's cheeks twisted up into a pout.

"Isn't that because your dad would do anything to get back into your mom's good graces?" Toshiro watched as both girls widened in surprise.

Yuzu tilted her head slightly as she continued to frown. "How did you know?"

Rukia and Ichigo slipped into the room then. They stopped speaking about whatever they had been discussing and instead stood watching the three young ones.

"How... I guess it's because I know your father so well. He's always trying to butter people up after he got into trouble."

"That's one of the few things we remember." Karin's eyes narrowed.

Toshiro blinked a couple of times before making a bow to the girls. "I'm sorry. This time I brought up something I shouldn't have."

"Toshiro... you don't need to apologize." Ichigo's voice caused the three to look up and see that the orange haired teen was smiling at them.

"Kurosaki..." The young taicho snapped up before looking away as his cheeks heated up from embarrassment.

"Ichi-nii..." Yuzu's face twisted up with worry as she stepped closer to her brother to grab his sleeve. "Ichi-nii... what were you and Ruki-nee arguing about?"

"Arguing about?" Rukia turned to look at Ichigo as her mouth twisted up into a frown. "We weren't arguing."

"Should we tell them?" One of Ichigo's hands reached up to scratch his head as he looked at her in a nervous manner. A nervous nod from Rukia caused the orange haired teen to let out a sigh. "Our family brought up a marriage arrangement that has yet to be fulfilled between the Kuchiki and Shiba clans."

A sparkle appeared in Yuzu's eyes as her mouth twisted up into a smile. "Does this mean that the two of you are getting married?"

"Of course not!" The two spoke in unison as the brown haired twin stared at them in confusion.

Toshiro folded his arms as he felt his own mouth twist into a frown. "But you two are so much like Kaien-dono and Miyako-dono."

Rukia blinked a couple of times as she looked at him. The brief silence was followed by her clearing her throat. "Thank you for the compliment Hitsugaya Taicho... I assume that was meant as a compliment. Ichigo and I have no plans on marrying any time soon."

"You're not going to marry..." Disappointment quickly came to Yuzu's face.

"We didn't say that." Ichigo looked at Rukia as he frowned. He looked at his sisters with a smile. "Why don't you girls go teach Rukia how to make hot chocolate? Dad wants Toshiro to help us decorate the family shrine."

"He's _what?_" Toshiro felt his voice tighten. "Why is he doing such a thing?"

"Perhaps you should ask him when we get there."

The small taicho hurried through the door to the nearby shrine. Isshin was sitting in the room with a boxes of Christmas decorations. The man looked up. "Toshiro..."

"Taicho! What do you mean by decorating your family shrine with Chrismtas decorations? How can you be so sacrilegious?"

"Toshiro... dad has no qualms with using memorials as dominoes and seeing how many he can knock over."

Isshin pounded his chest. "It's a proud tradition of the Shiba clan! We see who is first to knock over mother and father's memorial! Then we set it back up!" The smile left the man's face. "Did I say something wrong?"

"Sacrilege..." Toshiro glared at the man.

Ichigo looked away as if he didn't know that man. "Stupidity..."

"Hey! It was Ganju's idea!" Isshin pointed at the decorations. "This is mine. Don't you want Kaien and Miyoko to celebrate your first Christmas with the family with you Toshiro."

The young taicho's breath drew short. He then stepped over as his bright teal eyes widened and a smile spread across his face. "So... not sacrilege?"

"Nope. It is traditional to decorate the shrine with items during festive seasons and to light incense. They are _your_ parents Toshiro. You get the honor of lighting the first stick."

"No... I mean... you're the head of the family. It should be you." The boy's throat tightened.

"And I want you to do it. I want you to feel like you are a part of this family."

The young taicho carefully went and sat in the traditional position next to the man. He carefully placed a few decorations on the shrine as Isshin handed them to him. He then placed the incense sticks and lit the first one. Isshin quickly lit the next before Ichigo proceeded to do the same. There came then a moment of silence before they headed out. Toshiro wasn't sure how to feel about the whole thing as they headed back to the room with the Christmas tree.


	4. Christmas Mistletoe

**Frostbitten Mistletoe  
><em>Christmas Mistletoe<em>**

Toshiro's eyes watched as Rukia and Ichigo went to speak in the corner of the room. A frown spread across his face. Karin tapped his shoulder. "They're not arguing. They're both upset that Rukia's brother and dad sprung the marriage contract on them when they did."

"Yes... but don't they like each other... you know how Kaien-dono and Miyako-dono did?" The young taicho turned to look at the two girls as his frustration appeared on his face.

"You can say they're your mom and dad Toshiro..." Karen shook her head at him. "Rukia-nee says marriage is not in their plans."

"I can't believe they aren't jumping on it... it is obvious they like each other." Yuzu let out a deep sigh.

"What ever... let us put up the last of the decorations. Ichi-nii can put the star on top of the tree for us. That leaves..."

"... the mistletoe!" Yuzu let out a squeal of delight that caused Toshiro to flinch.

"What is... mistletoe?"

"You don't know? It is one of the most romantic things about Christmas!" The brown haired twin clapped her hands together.

"It... what?"

"On Christmas Eve and Christmas... a person caught under the mistletoe ends up kissed." Karen rolled her eyes.

"So... we could use this on Kurosaki and Kuchiki? To get them to admit their feelings for each other?" Toshiro's eyes widened as his mouth frowned. He watched as the two girls eyes widened. "What?"

Karen nodded her head. "We need to be secretive about where we place the mistletoe."

"Yeah... Ichi-nii and Rukia-nee are watching." Yuzu's head tilted over to the side. "That would ruin the surprise."

Toshiro took the small box from her. "I'll handle it." The two girls opened their mouths. "I know. Christmas isn't really my thing. But they're denying the fact they have feelings for each other... so why not help them along. While the girls had Ichigo put the star up on the tree he slipped out of the room. He headed outside and pulled out his blade. He ran his finger over the length and swung it to create a block of ice.

Placing the blade back he rubbed his hands and let the frost come out of his mouth. He began to chip away until the decoration was complete. He then pulled the decoration into the room where the Christmas tree was. As late as it was, everyone else had already headed to bed. He took a deep breath and carefully frosted the room over so that the ice sculpture wouldn't melt. He then took the time to place the mistletoe in a place that was above the sculpture.

He arrived at the room that was his when he was at the Shiba clan. He opened the door and blinked a couple of times. Ichigo was sitting in a corner reading a book. The orange haired teen looked up. "You're not happy that I'm here?"

The young taicho shook his head. "The Shiba clan... you're the head family."

"Toshiro... that's not what I meant. This is your room. I'm not taking it over." Ichigo watched as Toshiro's mouth opened and closed. "Kukaku-san said she could put together a room for me, but I asked to stay in the same room with you. You don't have a problem with that do you?"

"No... I mean..." The boy looked at the ground before heading over to his futon. He froze at seeing the pajama set. "What the..."

"My dad."

Toshiro felt his shoulders tighten up as he looked at the pajama set with the ugly Santa Clause and candy canes over it as well as the yucky pale green color. "Seriously..."

"I hid the set Yuzu and Karen picked out for you under the pillow." Ichigo watched as the boy turned to look at him in surprise. "My dad's sense of style is lacking – what he thinks is cute is not."

The young taicho knelt down next to the futon and moved the pillow to see a dark blue pajama set with snowflakes. "Did Kurosaki have more say on this then Kurosaki?"

"Toshiro... call my sisters by their first names. And yes... Karin is the one who insisted on this set. She knows you quite well. Go to bed... sleep in as long as you want to. Tomorrow is going to be a lot of fun." Ichigo's smile suddenly fell. "I think. Never can tell with dad. Ganju is likely the same way. Still can't believe he's my uncle."

**M**

Toshiro found himself sleeping in until breakfast was brought to him. He then tried helping in the kitchen again only to find himself kicked out by Karin. He went and re-frosted the room with the decorations again so the ice sculpture would last until the evening. He looked around with a rather pleased look on his face when a clearing of his throat caused him to turn to see Shiba Kukaku glaring at him with her arms crossed. He let out a yelp and disappeared. He found himself in the room with the family shrine.

He lit the incense and followed through with the ceremony only to find himself staring at the pictures of Kaien and Miyako. He remained there for a good period of time until Isshin sat down next to him. "You know... Kaien and Miyako would both be proud of you."

"I'm not really into this whole Christmas thing taicho. I don't know what to do."

"Do any of us know what to do around Christmas time. Kukaku, Ganju and I put double presents for you under the tree. Ones for Christmas, the other is for your birthday." The man watched as Toshiro glared at him. "What?"

"Taicho... I don't need gifts. Plus... I didn't get anything for you."

"You've given me the best thing ever Toshiro. You're my cute, little third seat who is now my cute, little nephew."

"Still..."

"Don't worry about it." The man left, and the young taicho leaned back to take a nap until someone came to tell him it was time.

He stood up and headed to the room and passed through the doorway. Karen came up and kissed him on the cheek. He looked at her with a horrified look on his face until she pointed up. Above the door frame was the mistletoe. "How?"

"Ichi-nii snuck out of your room after you went to sleep and moved it."

"Yes... but..." Toshiro blinked a couple of times as his cheeks flared red. "The intent was too..."

Rukia waved at him from where she was. "We know. You three were to obvious when you were talking. I never though you would do something like that Hitsugaya Taicho."

The young taicho paled and he bowed to the girl. "I'm sorry."

"Why?" Ichigo shook his head. "It was a rather clever idea. I also like the detail you put into that horse drawn sleigh too... though it is starting to melt. I took a picture with my phone."

"Yes... but..." Toshiro stood up as confusion spread across his face.

Yuzu came over with her typical pout. "I don't get it. Why can't you two just admit that you like each other? Why do you insist that there are no wedding plans?"

"Because we don't like the idea of being rushed into things." Ichigo watched as the three young ones looked at him in surprise. He let out laugh. "We felt like they were rushing us into a relationship when we want to take our time."

"Nii-sama apologized for bringing it forth like he did. He thought it was simply his way of giving his approval to court. Of course... the Shiba clan elders took it differently. They think it is as sure as your betrothal to Karen."

"What..." Toshiro's eyes widened as more color left his face. Karen's face paled as well.

"Oh... didn't you know? Apparently there was some kind of promise dad and Uncle Kaien made of marrying their first born son and daughter. Dad brought it up as a joke... but..."

"Oh... Bah-humbug!" The words came out of Toshiro's mouth without realizing it. He blinked a couple of times and found himself smiling as the others laughed.


End file.
